You would think that teachers, one of the favorite punching bags of lawmakers in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C., would pool their strength by forming a voting block that would make the Koch Brothers hide under their billions.

But that never happens.

Trying to get current and past school employees in 500 school districts in 67 counties to back one candidate in a statewide election is harder than keeping middle school boys from snickering in health class.

Why?

Teachers have lives and values outside work. That home life may not jibe with that of their co-workers or unions.

Just look at the Legislature. There’s plenty of Republicans and Democrats lawmakers who were former teachers. Their personal politics takes precedent over old school ties.

But, a candidate who could harness the collective might of the teachers’ vote would be hard to beat in any election.

State Treasurer Rob McCord knows that. He is trying to cease the teachers’ power in his quest to win the May gubernatorial Democratic primary and beat incumbent Republican Gov. Tom Corbett in November.

Last week, McCord (pictured above) boasted that he picked up the endorsement of PSERS’ political action committee.

“This endorsement from the working women and men of PSEA is immensely important to me, both personally and politically,” McCord said.

PSEA and other teachers unions and large segments of the public remain angry at Corbett because $1 billion in federal and state education funding was cut from schools in 2011-12.

“Corbett’s bad decisions have thrown our public schools into crisis, and Rob McCord is dedicated to making the right decisions for our schools, our students, and our communities,” PSEA President Mike Crossey said.

To try to get over the bad sentiments among teachers, Corbett has proposed spending $400 million more next fiscal year, which begins July 1. He is also traveling the statte praising teachers.

Will Corbett’s budget prorosal be enough to get over the collective anger? Will teachers vote like a block — or vote as indoviduals as they have in the past.